Having served almost 42 years, Judge McRae was the longest-serving circuit court judge in the state of Alabama. He was appointed to the Mobile County Circuit Court bench by Gov. George Wallace in 1965. At that time, he was the youngest jurist to be appointed to the bench.

He had a long distinguished career on the Circuit Court bench; but, first and foremost, he was a lawyer. Often referred to as "a lawyer’s judge," he was the first one to give advice and find a solution when a lawyer or his or her family had a personal problem.

He admonished lawyers to follow the maxim: "The sole purpose of a lawyer is to help people."

Judge McRae regarded advertising by the law profession with disdain. Extremely intelligent, he believed and vocalized that if attorneys treat their clients fairly and represent them admirably, they will spread the word. He believed that if a lawyer followed that principle, everything else, including the business side of his or her practice, would take care of itself.

Judge McRae loved all spectator sports, but his true love was Alabama football.

The late Coach Paul "Bear" Bryant sought the advice of Judge McRae, who was the unnamed Alabama recruiter in south Alabama for Alabama football. Many great Alabama football players were introduced to Alabama football by the judge.

Additionally, Judge McRae was a charter member of the Red Elephant Club in Mobile. He was asked by Coach Bryant to help with the initiation of this club in south Alabama. Some of the club’s first meetings were held in the judge’s tiny office in the old courthouse.

Many politicians, including Gov. Wallace, sought the advice of Judge McRae, who had an uncanny ability to understand the pulse of the Lower Alabama voters. Numerous "would be" politicians sought his advice before announcing their candidacy for a political position.

Oftentimes, the Judge would tell a possible candidate that, unfortunately, he or she had no chance of winning. He would say, "Save your money and your reputation and don’t run." Those who did not heed his advice were later sorry that they had not listened.

Judge McRae, a loyal friend, will be sorely missed by lawyers, judges, jurors, businessmen and acquaintances. He always had an opinion, and if you asked him a question, his response was never sugar-coated.